Fed-up students, whose sports field floods whenever it rains, took to the streets yesterday morning to protest at the Government?s alleged failure to fix the problem.

Pupils from Dellwood Middle School waved placards and sang the gospel standard ?Wade in the Water? as they lined North Street in Hamilton from 8.30 to 9 a.m.

Motorists tooted their horns in support as they slowed down to read the slogans on the banners including ?What?s The Deal, Our Children Have No Field?; ?Swimsuits Are Our Next Uniform? and ?We?re Not Happy, We?re Wet?.

School principal Janette Musson would not comment on the demonstration, in which teachers and parents also took part.

Teacher and union representative Joseph Robinson said only the Bermuda Union of Teachers (BUT) could speak about the protest. But he added: ?It?s related to some ongoing issues. It?s definitely about the school field ? it?s a major part of it. It was not disrupting our normal school day in terms of academic classes.?

Lisa Trott, BUT president, said she believed that the Government had agreed to fix the field and carry out other repairs at the school but had failed to do so.

?What I have been made to understand, is that there were a number of promises made to Dellwood regarding repairs that would take place, that were needed to take place, at the school.

?They were made promises about the school field and the physical plant of the building. What I understand is that the protest actually involved teachers, parents, as well as students. Today was a protest against broken promises.?

She added: ?They are feeling like they are in the position now, at the end of the school year, that they were in at the end of last year. Their kids are going to have to come back in September with none of these improvements made.?

Ms Trott said a letter had been sent to the Ministry of Education more than a week ago but no response had been received. She said the letter called for a proper drainage system for the sports field and other repairs, including replacement windows.

?The field floods very easily,? she said. ?You can get one heavy downpour of rain on the weekend and the field can be out of commission until Thursday of the following week.?

A source at the school, who asked not to be named, said: ?Every time it rains the ducks have a wonderful time. The field floods terribly and there is a lot of mud.

?The protest was to say ?give us a decent field so the children can play safely?. We were promised it would be done September gone and here we are, another school year has gone by.?

The source said the school itself was also in an ?awful? state of repair. ?The Government can?t equip our schools so that our children, who are our future, are being educated in decent surroundings.?

A parent, who also asked to remain anonymous, said: ?The students were protesting for a new school field to play on because every time it rains it gets muddy.

?They have been dealing with these conditions for like eight years. It was the students making a stand.?

A Ministry of Education spokesperson was unable to comment on the matter of the field last night. However, she said that the Ministry of Works is already carrying out maintenance work at Dellwood, under the direction of the Ministry of Education, which includes the installation of new windows. In addition, painting work and door and floor replacement work is scheduled over the course of the summer.